1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the destruction of hazardous materials, such as propellants and explosives in a molten salt medium, and is particularly directed to an improved molten salt vessel for this purpose, which substantially minimizes splashing of molten salt adjacent the top of the vessel and resultant formation of hard deposits on the walls of the vessel.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Hazardous material such as propellants and explosives require disposal of these materials as a waste, safely. The use of a molten salt bath containing, for example, alkali metal carbonate, as a medium for oxidation and destruction of such hazardous waste materials has been developed. However, during molten salt treatment of such hazardous waste materials, salt from the molten salt bath can be splashed on the walls of the vessel adjacent the top thereof, causing hard deposits to form which restrict passage of reaction gas to the gas outlet.
Previous designs of molten salt process vessels have employed a height to diameter ratio which has been found to be insufficient because it results in obtaining a significant amount of salt splashing adjacent the top of the vessel and freezing. Also, frozen solid particles of salt entrained in the product gas are carried up to the product gas outlet ducting and freeze adjacent the connection of the ducting and the process vessel. The frozen particles then adhere to the walls of the vessel at the top thereof. As these deposits build up they form a constriction adjacent the top of the vessel. Such constriction is just below the location where the process gas leaves the vessel and goes into the off-gas ducting.
In U.S. Pat. 4,421,631, of Ampaya, et al, an elongated reactor is employed for treatment of hydrocarbons utilizing a molten salt, so that several separate reactions in separate reaction zones can occur along the length of the reactor.